Apple Pays $53M Settlement for Water Damage Lawsuit

Apple was sued back in 2010 related to a sensitivity of liquid damage sensors. Now, the resolution to the class-action lawsuit over the water damage issue ended, and the Fruit Company needs to pay $53M settlement.

The plaintiffs, meaning the members of the class-action lawsuit, suggested the fact that the Liquid Submersion Indicators included in various Apple products over the years are faulty, and they can be triggered in normal use without being submerged in water. At that time, Apple rejected the request of repairing a broken device if the liquid indicator has been triggered.

The latest report shows that the settlement paid by Apple, applies to all customers whose warranty claims for iPhones were denied before Dec. 31, 2009. In the case of the iPod Touch, the warranty claims and settlement funds are eligible for devices with warranty before June 2010.

The complaints were first filed by San Francisco, Calif., resident Charlene Gallion. According to the plaintiff, she took her non-functional iPhone 3G into an Apple Store for service, but Apple employees told her that she was not eligible for a free repair or replacement because a Liquid Submersion Indicator has been triggered.

Along with the iPhone and iPod water issue, Apple started to ease its repair policies for iPods with triggered liquid sensors in early 2011. At that time, Apple suggested that if there are no external signs of corrosion on the device, the hardware will be replaced, and the warranty policy covers the problem.

For the respective devices, Apple offered one-year standard and two-year extended warranties, but in many cases the company accused the users of their damages iPhones and iPod Touches. As a measure of verification, Apple used an indicator placed inside the device. When the indicator changes from white to pink or red, it means that there was water damage, and the user was responsible for it.

Now, since the class-action lawsuit ended, Apple has agreed to pay $53 million to settle down in the warranties covering early versions of the iPhone and iPod Touch problem. However, the settlement still required the court’s approval. After this, it will be held in a fund and distributed among the 153,000 members of the class-action suit.

The settlement comes after a well-debated issue regarding Apple’s warranty policies in China. Here, Apple was accused of repairing only broken or faulty parts within its products for customers in China while, in other countries, the Fruit Company replaced the damaged devices with new ones. At that time, Apple officially apologies and changed its warranty policies.

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